Riding Giants, BBC4 TV

If anybody didn't catch it or lives outside of the UK, I can highly recommend a program broadcast lastnight BB4 Storyville - Riding Giants

The history of surfing culture is told through the exploits of the pioneers and contemporary heroes of big-wave surfing in Stacy Peralta's documentary, which features the likes of Greg Noll and Jeff Clark. Riding Giants makes palpable the magnitude and terrifying power of the waves they seek to conquer and captures the unfathomable combination of adrenaline and fear that the surfers experience each time they take on a monster swell.

The footage of some of those huge breakers is absolutely breath-taking.

The latest edition of Surfing Magazine is worth a look.

That’s when the metamorphosis began to show. I stopped caring about things I used to think were very important; my hair was no longer combed up just right, and I paid more attention to surf videos than to girls. I knew the importance of every surfer from Justin Matteson and Benji Weatherley to Tom Curren and Kelly, and knew all the songs in each of their videos. I became obsessed with the lifestyle and wanted to travel to France and Indonesia and Costa Rica and wherever else waves broke.

Garrett McNamara rides record wave 90 foot high.

Garrett McNamara, an extreme surfer from Massachusetts has earned his place in the Guiness Book of Records after riding a wave estimated to be 90 foot high.

McNamara caught the huge wave in Praia do Norte, Portugal.  This part of the Portugese coastline has a deep water canyon which funnels large Atlantic swells and often creates record-breaking waves.

You can catch more videos Garetts blog has more videos and describes his obsession with finding and riding monster waves.


Surfer Today reports Garrett as saying: ‘I feel so blessed and honoured to have been invited to explore this canyon and its special town. The waves here are such a mystery.’

A Canadian view of the English Surfing Scene

The Vancouver Sun has an interesting article about a Canadian's trip to Newquay

it wasn't my jet-lag glaze or that funny North American accent that gave me away. It was my clothes. Specifically, that they were dry and not made of neoprene. I was surrounded by suits - wetsuits. Welcome to Newquay, surfing capital of the U.K.

 And who would have believed that you can actually do a degree in Surf Science and Technology!!

Courteney Cox dons wetsuit for filming of Cougar Town

Courteney Cox has been snapped on a Californian Beach wearing a black wetsuit for the filming of her popular TV show Cougar Town

In the show, Courteney Cox plays a recently divorced single mother exploring the pitfalls of mid-life romance, dating and growing old.

The show is set in Florida, but Courteney is pictured here on a beach in Southern California.

New wetsuits range from Body Glove

Two heavy hitters in ocean-adventure have teamed up to create a line of wetsuits. Jean-Michel Cousteau, and Body Glove join forces to launch a line of wetsuits, rash guards, skins, and more. Read the official release from Body Glove on the collaboration, and the goodwill this line will contribute to ocean preservation.

The Billabong Revolution range and Zero Gravity Superflex Neoprene

If you are looking for a lightweight or extremely flexible suit, have a look at the Billabong Revolution range with its 3D Silicon Grippers on the wrists and ankles, weleded seams inside and out, it has to be one of the best mid-priced suits on the market.  The Zero Gravity Superflex Neoprene makes these suits the best value for money in the market.

Surfer surfs on the back of a shark off the Oregon coast

Read the full story from Boston.com

Surfer Doug Niblack was trying to catcha wave early in the morning, when his surfboard hit something hard in the water and he suddenly found himself standing on the back of a great white shark.

Looking down, he could see a dorsal fin in front of his feet as he stood on what he described as 10 feet of back as wide as his surfboard and as black as his own Neoprene wetsuit. A tail thrashed back and forth and the water churned around him like a depth charge went off.

Billabong Summer Fashion Range

The Billabong girls fuse fashion, music & art with a surf lifestyle.  Visit the Billabong site to see this winter's collection

How can you choose the right winter wetsuit?

Choosing the right winter wetsuit depends on many things including the local climate and water temperature, whether you plan on using the suit for surfing, swimming, kayaking, scuba diving or any of the other myriad uses for a wetsuit.

The Revolution series from Billabong is perfect for European winter surfing.  The features include a contour collar, furnace lining and pre-bent anatomic panelling to make the suit not only warm enough for 5-13 degrees celcius sea temperatures.

Click on the image below to check Billabong's chart and find the right type of winter wetsuit for your local sea temperature.